If you’ve played guitar for any length of time, then it’s inevitable that your guitar strings are going to break every once in a while.
That’s the life of a guitar player. And there’s nothing more cringy than the sound of your guitar string breaking right when you’re in the middle of playing in front of other people. Yeah, that can be pretty embarrassing.
Why do guitar strings break anyway? The most common reason a guitar string will break is from normal wear and tear.
However, if you’re finding that your strings are breaking more often than usual, there may be something contributing to your guitar string’s early demise.
In this article, we will be discussing the most common reasons that your strings might be breaking. We will also explore ways to reduce how often your guitar strings break.
That way you can spend less time replacing snapped strings, and more time doing what you love – playing guitar!
Table of Contents
Your Guitar Strings Are Worn Out
One of the most common reasons for a broken guitar string is the actual strings themselves. When was the last time you changed the strings on your guitar?
Using worn-out guitar strings is a sure-fire way to cause breaking. Guitar strings tend to accumulate dirt, natural oils from your hands, and even dust if you haven’t played in a while.
I recommend keeping about 2 spare sets of guitar strings on hand at any given time. Not only that, but guitar strings are relatively inexpensive, so there’s really no excuse for not changing your strings on a regular basis.
Also, if you’re constantly re-tuning your guitar all the time, it helps wear the strings out faster, because of the frequent tightening and loosening of strings.
You’re Using the Wrong Type of Guitar Strings
Another reason you may be having problems with string breakage is possibly due to the type of strings you’re currently using. A great example of this would be drop tuning.
Alternate tunings can definitely have an impact on your strings, especially if the strings are too light. Try using a higher thickness string if you tend to tune your guitar in an alternate fashion.
If you have multiple guitars, an easy way to deal with this is to leave one of your guitars tuned to your most frequent alternate tuning. And then keep one of your guitars set up on standard tuning.
This is exactly what I do. A lot of the music I like to practice requires Drop D tuning or C tuning, so I try to keep at least one of my guitars tuned this way at all times.
That way, not only do my strings last longer, but it also eliminates the constant need to re-tune my guitar to play a different song that might require standard tuning.
Are Your Guitar Strings Always Breaking in the Same Spot?
If you notice that your guitar strings seem to be breaking in the same spot on your guitar, then there might be a sharp edge or another rough area that may be weakening your strings enough to break.
For instance, if your guitar string is breaking up by the headstock, then it could possibly be the nut or even the tuning peg.
First, check the nut area. Dirt and grime tends to build up in this spot over time, causing rough edges. The slots might also tend to be uneven, especially on cheaper guitars.
Also, be sure to check the tuning peg for sharp edges. Even if the pegs don’t leave the factory in that condition, the sharpness could be coming from the simple friction of the strings themselves.
This usually happens over a period of time and not right away – unless your guitar is new.
If your strings tend to break in the fretboard area, then this could be caused by your frets becoming sharper and sharper over time. The best way to fix this would be to use sandpaper on the fret until it is smooth.
Do your strings keep breaking near the bridge area of your guitar? If so, then it’s likely due to sharp bridge saddles. In fact, this is probably the most common reason that strings are likely to break in this area.
Most of the issues stated above can be fixed quite easily by using sandpaper. However, I would recommend purchasing a guitar maintenance kit. These kits come with a variety of guitar tools, and almost all of these kits have special sandpaper for sanding down sharp edges.
How To Keep Your Guitar Strings From Breaking
There are a few habits you can get into that will help prevent your strings from constantly breaking. One good habit is to make sure that your guitar strings are kept clean.
Wipe them down with a soft and lint-free cloth after every use. This may seem like a hassle, but so is having to change guitar strings all the time.
Another thing you can do is lubricate the nut and the bridge every once in a while. This helps to reduce the friction caused by your strings sliding around, which creates the sharp edges to begin with.
I recommend using a special lubricant such as Big Bend’s Nut Sauce. This lubricant is made for guitars so it won’t ruin or rust any parts of your guitar. And it comes with a small tip so it’s easy to apply.
Also, make sure you are inspecting your frets, nut, bridge, and tuning pegs from time to time. If you see something that could become an issue for your strings down the road, you might as well take care of it now, before a string breaks prematurely.
If you suspect that you have the wrong type of strings, you might want to experiment with different thicknesses until you find the strings that are right for you.
- "Groove lubber" 1.5CC size
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- Reduces string friction to improve tuning stability and reduce string breakage
Last update on 2025-10-27 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
Final Thoughts
Most guitar strings don’t just randomly break. There is always a reason for why they snapped. The first thing to ask yourself is when was the last time the strings were changed. And let’s be honest, brand new strings sound so much better anyway, don’t they?
If your strings keep breaking even after you’ve done everything you possibly can, it might be time to take your guitar to a professional and have them look it over.
There could be something wrong with the neck of your guitar or other part that you may not be aware of.
